Eye of the Phoenix
by Lady Adrenaline
Summary: Hidden Leaf's worst and only snaky enemy emerges from the dark depths of a young and energetic teenage girl's past to steal her powerful, fiery spirit - no pun intended - for she harbors in her body something that goes back thousands of years: the phoenix.
1. Preface: Part One

**~ Important Note ~ **

**After reading, please look at the character descriptions on my profile so you can know exactly what the characters look like.**

**Reviews are also much appreciated. (:  
**

**Please (again) and thank you!  
**

* * *

Eye of the Phoenix_ is my very first _Naruto_ fan fiction, let alone any fan fiction, that I ever wrote._

_I started it almost three years ago and it has been revised many times in many ways since then._

_This is something that I had put off for most of those years because I just wanted to live my life, y'know?_

_Although writing was and is a big part of my life, I needed to walk away from even that._

_Even though I could've used all that time to work on and get further with this, I don't regret neglecting it one bit, because most of my inspiration for my stories comes from my life experiences._

_In my opinion, it never takes too much time to create something._

_So, with that said, I'll finish off by mentioning that this isn't exactly a fan fiction, but an OC story, so a slight twist there. ;)_

_Twists might actually be my specialty~_

_I think...  
_

* * *

_**Eye of the Phoenix - Preface: Part One**_

* * *

It was seven days 'til Christmas, the 18th of December. On that very day, a miracle happened: baby girl, Kimoyo Yusagi, was brought to Earth in the Land of Fire: The Village Hidden in the Leaves. She was very special, though, as she was bound with a spirit by destiny. The spirit was neither bad or good, but it was most powerful, considered invincible by the very few who were familiar with it. Since the ancientest legends, that spirit could only be defined as the one and only Numaji the Phoenix. Unlike the Tailed Beasts, Numaji didn't have a seal of any kind, nor was he even a Tailed Beast. Therefore, the chances of proving that Kimoyo was harboring a beast inside of her were nearly none. That is, until she got angry.

When Kimoyo's mother gave birth to the special girl, she was sent into a coma and fell to the very edge of her life. Thankfully, she didn't make it further past that. Then, as she rested and gradually became conscious within the next few hours, a medical-nin walked in, holding grim news in his hollow expression.

"Your baby turned out to have a very unstable condition. We did everything possible to treat her and keep her alive, but she was able to survive only an hour-and-a-half or so. I'm very sorry..."

As the mother was left to drown in cries of despair and unceasing tears, the doctor went down the dark, empty halls of the hospital and vanished into gray-white smoke. He was only a disguised shadow clone. The creator of the clone was out in the frosty night on top of the hospital's roof holding Kimoyo, who was wailing in fear, coldness, and pain from her newly-given curse mark that had formed upon the snake biting on her neck. If anything, now was the biggest opportunity for her to die. Before any of the damage was really done, though, she was finally whisked off into the white atmosphere, never to return again.

* * *

_The Village Hidden in Sound: Orochimaru's Lair_

* * *

Kimoyo was immediately put to sleep for testing to examine how her body was handling the curse mark. Her heartbeat was trying to keep a steady pace, but would slightly fluctuate here and there, as did her breathing. Other than that, she was adjusting to the effects that was taking place - slowly but surely. After about two hours of the process, Kabuto, came out and announced the results.

"I'm done with the examination."

"And...?" the now-obvious Orochimaru insisted dully in his light, semi-whispery voice.

"Everything seems normal. If it weren't for her phoenix spirit, though, she probably wouldn't be alive right now since she's just a newborn."

"Of course," Orochimaru replied, smiling evilly as usual. "The phoenix is the reason why I gave her the curse mark in the first place - so it could be evened out with the new spirit, the new power I've given her, in exchange for her spirit's later on. It will be much easier to manipulate her this way." Orochimaru was now grinning wickedly.

"So...now what are you going to do with her?"

Orochimaru's grin relaxed into a smile. "I've had it planned all along; I'll raise her and make her my apprentice, just like I did with Anko, and once she is eligible enough to become a shinobi, I'll activate the curse mark, erasing all her memories she ever had of me, then find and lead her to the Leaf Village in my disguised form."

"Impressive," Kabuto remarked with a smirk.

"Yes, my plans _are_ always brilliant, aren't they, Kabuto?" Orochimaru let out a long, steady, echoing chuckle that slowly faded into the eery darkness of the lair.

* * *

_Eight Years Later; Kimoyo's Eighth Birthday_

* * *

After all those years of training and torture (not only for Kimoyo), it had finally come to an end, and it was time for Orochimaru to do what he had planned for the past eight years. Now, Orochimaru and Kabuto were discussing the plan for once instead of how to help each other deal with Kimoyo.

"Wouldn't you rather prefer taking her body?" Kabuto suggested.

"That's where Uchiha comes in," Orochimaru explained.

"You mean Sasuke Uchiha? The last survivor of the Uchiha clan?"

"That's correct. Although Kimoyo's power is by far more powerful to say the least, Sasuke's body is physically stronger. Or, at least...that's how it will be...once he comes to me." And then he was back to his devilish smile, which soon disappeared when a clear yet gentle yawn filled the room.

"Mmn...Lord Orochimaru? Is that you babbling again?" Kimoyo mumbled half asleep while rubbing her left eye with her left hand, which was balled into a fist, and holding the hand of her brown puppy stuffed animal with the other as its legs drooped to the floor.

"Ohh, I'm sorry. Did we wake you?" Orochimaru questioned sweetly with a smile.

"Eh, it's okay," Kimoyo said as she stopped rubbing her eye. "I was already awake a while ago. I just decided to stay in bed and try to get some more sleep." Kimoyo yawned again.

"Well, we'll talk more quietly now. So, you can go back to bed."

"It's okay, I'm not that tired anymore. Besides, it's morning."

"You're right. Well then, I suppose it's time I gave you your present."

"Huh? What present?" Kimoyo asked raising an eyebrow, then suddenly both as she gasped, remembering. "Oh, yeah! It's my birthday today! I can't believe I forgot!" Orochimaru chuckled with his mouth closed as he was standing in front of a desk near his chair.

"Silly girl. Happy Birthday," he said grinning as he picked up something folded from the desk, then held it so it unfolded and revealed a beautifully-made red and white kimono. Kimoyo gasped softly as she gazed at it for a moment.

"It's beautiful...," she murmured softly. "Ohh, thank you, Lord Orochimaru~!" She ran happily and hugged him tight with the puppy still in her hand as the kimono squeezed in between them.

"I knew you'd like it," Orochimaru said grinning and gently hugging her back, meaning he had to let go of the kimono, so the top part of it drooped on Kimoyo's head, making him and Kimoyo giggle before they parted.

"All right, lemme go try it on!" Kimoyo said as she took the kimono from Orochimaru's hands and hung it on her left arm.

"Not before you give me a hug, 'cause I got you a present, too," Kabuto said smiling and holding out two white ribbons for her hair in his right hand. "I know it's not much, but...at least it'll match with your kimono."

"Yeah, well...better than nothing," Kimoyo said as she walked forward and took the ribbons.

"Oh, you spoiled, little brat! Happy Birthday," Kabuto said playfully as he wrapped his arms around Kimoyo's stomach and leaned in to kiss her on her right cheek, making her smile, blush, and her right eye twitch. With the puppy still in her hand and the ribbons in the other, she hugged his arms with the kimono hung on it since that's all she could do. Kabuto then loosened his grip, letting Kimoyo push free.

"Neh! I'm not spoiled!" Kimoyo whined as she wiped the kiss off with the back of her left hand with her right eye still squeezed closed. "I'm being nice to you by accepting it, ya know!"

"Okay, so you're nice, and you're not spoiled, but you're still a brat," Kabuto said with a smirk.

"Hmph!" Kimoyo cried as she hit Kabuto's arm with her puppy, making Orochimaru chuckle, and stomped off to her room.

"Ow, that actually hurt...," Kabuto murmured as he rubbed his arm.

"Serves you right!" Kimoyo yelled as she turned around from the entrance of her room. "Nehh!" She then stuck out her tongue with her mouth open and pulled the bottom part of her eye down with her left index finger, revealing the red. Then she went in and slammed the door shut as Orochimaru and Kabuto stared in awkward silence.

* * *

_Ten Minutes Later_

* * *

Kimoyo calmly walked out of her room wearing her kimono and hair ribbons along with blue ninja sandals she was given - even though she's not a ninja...yet - no longer holding a burden.

"Well, how do I look?" Kimoyo asked cheerfully and spinned with her arms out, making the kimono move along with her, as if nothing ever happened.

"You look absolutely adorable," Orochimaru said smiling.

"Yes, fabulous," Kabuto added smiling as well.

"Thank you~" No one bothered to say "You're welcome." They just went straight to the plan.

"Hmm, I just remembered...I have one more present to give you," said Orochimaru with what looked like a smile, but from close-up, it was an evil smirk.

"Oh, really?" Kimoyo asked, her voice at the edge of exploding from excitement. "What is it?"

"Spoiled," Kabuto coughed out, covering his mouth with the side of his fist while his other hand held his elbow. Kimoyo sharply turned to him with clenched fists as she severely glared at him, a vein pulsing through her head. Kabuto just walks away.

"Yeah, you better walk away...," Kimoyo threatened, then turned back to Orochimaru with no sign of anger, neither in her face or voice. "So, what were you saying?" Orochimaru's smirk grew bigger.

"Come stand in front of me and close your eyes," he commanded.

"Okie dokie~" With a smile, Kimoyo marched like a soldier while moving her hands and stopped and stood firmly in front of Orochimaru, closing her eyes and placing her hands over them.

"Good. No peeking now," Orochimaru said in a playful voice.

"I wooon't~" Kimoyo said in the same tone, still smiling, her heart beating in excitement, impatience, and nervousness.

"Open," Orochimaru finally said after what seemed like a day. Kimoyo slowly opened her eyes and brought her hands down and showed no reaction until she fully realized what the present was, but she didn't get a chance to, because right at that moment, she forgot everything - about Orochimaru and Kabuto, all her memories with them, where she was... Basically everything that happened before she opened her eyes. Therefore, she was left with only one thing: her name. Well, her first name, that is, since Orochimaru never mentioned her last one.

After all that who-knows-what, Kimoyo looked around, scared and confused. She took one option out of two and decided to see if anyone was there since it looked like a decent living place. "Hello? ... Helloooo? Anybody there?" Kimoyo called out, searching frantically. To her surprise, her voice sounded lighter and softer than usual, almost as if she was a completely different person. At first she was curious, but then ignored it and moved on.

After about five minutes, she gave up, taking option two, and head out, more fear and panic filling her heart by the thought of it. As soon as she saw how beautiful it was, though, her soul calmed and a light smile formed on her face as she closed her eyes and breathed in the fresh pine smell in the air and snow. Kimoyo then began to walk, still smiling as she looked around at the white, heavenly scenery, her heart relaxing further more. Her Happy Land was soon interrupted, however, when she walked over something that felt and sounded like water. Kimoyo looked down to see she'd stepped on, of course, a puddle. After she took her foot off of it and saw her reflection, it wasn't her. Kimoyo knelt down and took a closer look at herself while touching her face.

"What...happened to me...?" she muttered, feeling more panicked than before. In the puddle, she could faintly see her crimson eyes had changed into a dull purple, but she wasn't convinced. She looked down at her hands to see if they really were pale. They were. She turned her eyes to one pig tail to see if it really was black. It was. Impossible. Kimoyo couldn't believe her eyes, so she quickly rubbed them with her fists and looked at the puddle again, comparing it to her real self one last time and gasped. Kimoyo was convinced that it was all real. Her heart beat faster, her stomach hurt more, and her hands shook along with her whole body, but not because of the cold.

"I'm not dreaming...," Kimoyo managed to say, yet it came out soft and shaky. Then suddenly, she started to feel dizzy and weak and slowly wobbled left to right. Her last words before fainting were, "What's...happening?"


	2. Preface: Part Two

**_Eye of the Phoenix - Preface: Part Two_**

* * *

Kimoyo woke up under a large, snow-covered tree beside a lady sitting next to her. She immediately sat up with her back against the tree and asked, "What happened? And who are you?" Before the lady could answer, she quickly did another self-check with her eyes. She was back to normal.

"So, you're finally awake. I noticed you lying out cold by a puddle and assumed you fainted by my best judgement. Who I am is of no importance, however," the lady replied. "Do you, by any chance, have anyone who takes care of you?"

"Not anyone I know of," Kimoyo replied miserably.

"Hm... Well, come with me then." The lady stood up.

"O-Okay." Kimoyo got up also, nervously wondering where she was going to be taken, while the lady took her hand. The two of them started walking out of the forest and out into the snowy village.

"So, what is your name?"

"Kimoyo. I don't know my last name, though."

"I see. Then whoever took care of you must've not ever told you it."

"Yeah... I wonder if I even had someone to take care of me...like my parents. I'd really like to know what happened to them..."

"I'd wonder the same thing if I were you. Although, there could be a chance that you did know them at some point. Maybe just don't remember."

"Maybe... Eh, I doubt it."

"Just a thought; you never know." Before Kimoyo could think of what else to say in protest, the lady stopped, looked at her, and let go of her hand. "Well then, I must be leaving now. But, before I do, I'll take you somewhere where you can be willingly taken care of. Not anyone here in the Sound Village really has the heart to care for anything."

"Where are you taking me exactly?"

"The Village Hidden in the Leaves."

Without another word, the two of them flashed away to the village and got there in the blink of an eye.

"It was nice meeting you, Kimoyo. I hope to meet you again one day, but for now, our paths must part. Farewell." And, with that, she immediately disappeared with the wind blowing the leaves, not giving Kimoyo a chance to say anything - just leaving her staring speechless.

"Some lady... Doesn't even wait for me to say bye to her...," Kimoyo complained in annoyance.

While she complained some more in her head, she heard a bunch of talking coming from behind and realized that she was facing the village with her back and turned around to see what was going on: there was a huge crowd with their backs turned, because apparently, they were talking to something, or someone, that was in front of them. She didn't listen to what they were saying since she was greatly curious about what was happening, and approached the crowd, trying to get through any space there was for her, but it was impossible. She couldn't even go around because there were so many people. So, she had no choice, but to wait until it was clear. To her surprise, it didn't take very long. As soon as everyone was gone, Kimoyo could clearly see what was there. It almost seemed like she was looking at herself from a far-away mirror, except she saw herself as a boy with blonde hair and blue eyes - crying.

'They were talking over this boy?' Kimoyo thought as she continued to stare at the boy in great pity. When she couldn't take it anymore, Kimoyo slowly walked up towards him and asked worriedly, but politely, "Hey, why are you crying?"

The boy didn't answer and just continued crying.

"Hey..." Kimoyo lightly put a hand on his arm.

"Whadduyou want? Just leave me alone...," the boy finally replied, still in the same position. Kimoyo could tell that he didn't really want that.

"Would you mind telling me what's wrong? I want to help you."

The boy looked up from his crying. "What...?" he asked softly, lowering his fists from his eyes as his expression changed from sad to surprised and confused, yet his eyes held a hint of hope.  
"Why do you...?" Clearly, he didn't know what to say. "Why would you wanna help someone like me? I mean...I'm a monster. Why aren't you afraid of me like everybody else?"

"Afraid of you? Wait, so...is that why there was that huge crowd around you?"

"Yeah, they all hate me...and I don't know why..." The boy lowered his head. "I don't get how I'm a monster..." He sniffed. Kimoyo couldn't take his pain any longer. Tears were nearly falling from her eyes. Before she felt one slip, she quickly threw her arms around the boy and embraced him tightly, like she was afraid something would happen to him, just like a mother would for her child.

The boy gasped softly and stood there shocked, unable to move and not knowing what to do or say. Slowly, he loosened. "What are you...?"

"Shh... It's okay, I feel your pain...even if I haven't been through all that." Kimoyo was completely relaxed with her eyes closed and a small smile on her face. Even if she didn't know this boy at all, with him, she somehow felt...safe. The heat of his body, his voice, the sound and speed of his breathing and heartbeat... Just every little thing about him calmed her completely.

Just when Kimoyo was about to unwrap her arms from the boy and come out from her comfortable numbness, thinking the boy wasn't going to do anything, she was caught off guard just as much as he was, but didn't move a unit. He had pressed his hands against her lower back and dug his face into her shoulder. "Thank you... Thank you so much..."

* * *

_Five Seconds Later_

* * *

"Wait, what am I doing?" the boy cried soon after he realized he was hugging a girl, yanking himself off of Kimoyo, who was giggling with her sweet smile.

"I see you're feeling better."

"Yeah, yeah...," the boy whined. "So, what's your name? I'm Naruto - Naruto Uzumaki - future Hokage! Believe it!" Kimoyo giggled again. She loved his sudden cockiness. "I'm Kimoyo. You wanna be friends..._Naruto_?" Kimoyo winked playfully as she put emphasis on his name.

"Tch, are you kidding me?" Kimoyo's heart sank. "With a girl like you? Heck yeah!" Kimoyo's spirit was back up again as she smiled brightly.

"Great! So, whadduyou wanna do?"

"Huh, good question... Lemme think for a sec... Hmm...," Naruto murmured as he looked up while scratching his chin as his other hand was holding his scratching hand's elbow. After three seconds, he said, "Meh, I got nothin'...," as he slumped his shoulders and frowned. "You?" Now the pressure was on Kimoyo as she looked side-down in thought. Then as soon it came to her mind, she grabbed Naruto's right wrist with her right hand and pulled him along, not considering how he would react.

"Ah! Hey, where are we going?" Naruto asked in total shock, trying to keep up as he stumbled along behind Kimoyo.

"Well, I heard that there's a ninja academy somewhere around here, and since I've always wanted to become a ninja, I'm just psyched to see it!"

"Really?" Naruto asked with grin. "I've always wanted to become a ninja, too! That's why I'm learning there - so I could become a great ninja, and in the future, Hokage!" Naruto raised a fist halfway in the air as he looked off to the side in pride.

"Really?" Kimoyo asked excited with hope as she stopped running to let go of Naruto's wrist and turned around to face him. "Oh, please, could you take me there?"

"Sure, why not? Come on!" Now it was Kimoyo's turn to stumble, except she was held by the hand.

* * *

_At Ninja Academy_

* * *

"Wooow...," Kimoyo says softly as she gazes at the entrance of the academy, her eyes the size of dinner plates. "Can we go in?" she asks with a hopeful grin.

"After you," Naruto says and gestures like a gentlemen.

When they both walked in just by a little distance, they saw a group of boys were coming towards them the opposite direction. There were three of them.

"Well, what a coincidence! I was just about to introduce you to these guys!" Naruto said.

"They're your friends?" Kimoyo asked, assuming.

"Yup!" The boys were now standing in front of them, and before either of them could say anything, Naruto said, "Hey, guys! I wanna introduce you to my new friend, Kimoyo." He turns to Kimoyo. "Kimoyo, these are my friends, Chouji, Kiba, and Shikamaru." He gestured toward each boy as he said their names in the order they were standing.

"Don't forget Akamaru," said Kiba, looking up at his adorable companion, seated comfortably on his head, as he barked. Kimoyo giggled. Dogs were always her favorite animal. She thought they were just the cutest things ever.

"Yeah...," Naruto said in an I-don't-care tone.

"And, I don't know, Naruto," Kiba said while smirking as he scratched his chin with his head tilted slightly and his other hand holding his elbow. "She looks more like a girlfriend to me." Kiba's smirk got bigger.

"What?"

Kimoyo was about to protest also, but she stopped and decided to stand up for herself instead. "Yeah, a friend that's a girl. Got a problem with that?" she insisted seriously, her expression matching her voice as she folded her arms and tilted her head like Kiba. Naruto decides to play along.

"Haha, yeah. You're just jealous~"

"What? Jealous? You can't be serious. Why would I want an annoying girl as a friend?"

Kimoyo unfolded her arms. "Hey! Well, if _that's_ what you think, you better change your mind soon, 'cause there's no way you're gonna get a girlfriend like that, buddy!"

"Oh, yeah? Says who, Miss Smarty Pants?"

"It's called common sense, genius!" Kimoyo puts her fists on her hips. "Tell me, have you ever heard of that? Hmm? Hmmm? HMMMM?" Kimoyo leaned in closer to Kiba with each "Hmm?" until she was just inches away from his face. There was an awkward silence as everyone stood motionless, speechless, and shocked, especially Kiba. Kimoyo then broke in and stood straight. "See? I knew it. Wow, you're such an idiot!" Kiba's eyebrows crossed inward in anger as he gritted his teeth, a low growl building up in his throat, but Kimoyo ignored it. "Come on, Naruto!" Kimoyo orders, taking him by the hand. "We don't need to deal with this _bonehead_!" Kimoyo pulls Naruto along and heads further into the academy.

"Gee, I really feel for you, Naruto. You have put up with ugly boar now," Kiba teases. Kimoyo turns around and does a raspberry at him.

"Uhh, bye, guys," Naruto managed to say in his stumbling with his head turned to the boys. Only Chouji and Shikamaru said goodbye back. Kiba just glared after Kimoyo.

* * *

_A hateful relationship (Or, is it? ;D) already?  
_

_Hmm..._

_(By the way, a raspberry is that spitty, vibrating thing you do with your tongue._

_It's real popular with the kids.)  
_


	3. Preface: Part Three

_**Eye of the Phoenix - Preface: Part Three**_

* * *

Already having put aside yesterday's incident, Kimoyo was now an official academy student at Konoha's Ninja Academy, thanks to Naruto. Almost everybody in sight was unknown to her, except for Naruto and the boys from yesterday. She thought the one that barked at her might've been more of a dog than a boy, though.

"Class, we have a new student with us today. Let's show our best respect for her as she introduces herself," said Iruka-sensei, gently pushing Kimoyo along to the front of the class.

"Um…hi, everyone! My name is Kimoyo. The funny thing is," she put a hand behind her head and the other behind her back, smiling nervously, "I don't actually know my last name since I have no memories of my childhood," she held both hands behind her, "but the past is the past, so now…I'm really looking forward to meeting you all and becoming great ninja together!"

"Thank you, that was very nice. Now go ahead and take whatever seat there is."

Kimoyo looks all over the room for an empty seat until she finally finds one – right below Kiba.

'Oh, no… You gotta be kidding me...,' Kimoyo thought, gaping at him in horror. It took most of her willpower to walk towards it.

As she made her way up the rows of seats, someone whispered, "What's with the kimono?"

"It's cute!" someone else whispered back.

When Kimoyo was close enough to see Kiba's features clearly, she could see that he was smirking like he won, and she was about to end up being tortured. She didn't know about the first part, but the second part was sure to happen. Oh, what a cruel fate it was.

But as long as they didn't talk, there was no problem, right? Wrong. After Kimoyo sat down, Kiba took the opportunity of having a perfect angle above a girl with pig tails, and ruthlessly yanked at one of them.

"HEY." Kimoyo immediately turned around, knowing it was obviously Kiba who pulled her hair, with an eye flinched in pain and a hand on the poor pig tail. "Seriously?"

"What makes you think it was me?" Kiba asked as innocently as possible, though his cocky grin completely gave him away.

Kimoyo squinted her eyes into a glare and said, "Don't play _dumb_. I know it was you, nimrod!"

"Hey, you better watch it, missy! You don't who you're talking to."

"You better watch it, missy! Nyeh-nyeh-nyeh-nyeh-nyeh-nyeh-nyeh-nyeh!" Kimoyo mocked in a whiny voice.

"Pfft…"

"Hmph!"

Finally, she turned away and plopped her head onto her arms, her lips pursed and eyes squeezed shut in irritation. She tried to let it go by turning her attention to Iruka-sensei and try to actually get something out of her first lesson. For the next few minutes, she was finally at peace, or so she thought, before another tug at her other pig tail.

"Would you quit it?" Kimoyo cried after turning her head around again.

"Would you stop accusing me? Geez, you're such a pain!" Kiba argued.

"Look who's talking, moron! Can't you just get over yourself and leave me and my poor hair alone? It's really sad when someone doesn't have self-control."

"Fine. Say whateeever you want, but I'm telling you; it's NOT me."

Kimoyo glared at him the same way as before and said, "This is your last warning, Inuzuka." She had learned his last name after overhearing it from a teacher.

Turning back around and expecting the tug of war between Kiba and her head to be over, she relaxed again, putting her ears back to Iruka-sensei's voice. It had been well over ten minutes and Kimoyo truly believed that her nightmare was finally over. There were only several more minutes left of class, and all was at peace. As for Kiba, he just had to get in one more pull before the end of class, so he stretched both his hands out and gave one last hard pull on both her pig tails. He was going to regret doing that.

"ARGH! THAT'S IT." Kimoyo jumped from her seat, already facing Kiba, and tackled his shirt with her hands, shaking him back and forth like a barbarian. "Didn't I tell you to stop, you mut? Now you're gonna get it!"

"Kimoyo! Kiba! What in the world is going on back there? The two of you have been bickering for the past fifteen minutes!" yelled Iruka-sensei.

"He was pulling my hair the whole time!" Kimoyo explained, pointing at Kiba with one hand and still holding him by the shirt with the other.

"Not the whole time…," murmured Kiba irritably.

"AHA! GUILTY!"

This caused Iruka-sensei to let out a long, frustrated sigh as he put a hand on his forehead while folding his other arm, then said, "Kimoyo, calm down, and Kiba, please stop pulling her hair. Class is almost over, so you could you please make it worthwhile for the rest of us?"

"Fine…," Kiba and Kimoyo chimed simultaneously.

Kimoyo forcefully let go of Kiba and sat down, as did Kiba, who was dazed not only from being shook, but from something that caught his eye. He swore he saw Kimoyo's naturally red irises glow just as she grabbed him by the shirt. It could've just been the light illuminating her eyes, he thought. Or something else...

* * *

The next day, the whole class was taken outside into the training grounds to practice their aim of throwing kunai and shuriken on wooden stalks, as well as their punching and kicking accuracy. As a reward afterwards, there would be free time, or, what the kids like to call, playtime. When that time came, Kiba and Kimoyo soon ended up in another brawl like opposite magnets. It was quite amusing, actually. Most of the argument involved name-calling (especially on Kimoyo's behalf), one of them being boar, like Kiba mentioned two days ago.

"Do I look anything like a boar to you?" Kimoyo protested.

"Sure! Here are your nice, big tusks!" Kiba said enthusiasticly as he took Kimoyo's pig tails and held them out beside her face to cleverly represent boar tusks.

"Don't _touch_ me!" Kimoyo pushed him, and he let her hair go.

"Don't _push_ me!" Kiba pushed back harder, and she fell.

Kimoyo sat there on her bottom for a moment before staggering back to her feet, and, enraged, charged at full speed with the intent of giving Kiba a good, hard punch. Right before she went for it, she was lifted back by Iruka-sensei, causing her to thrash her whole body in every direction possible in attempt to get away.

"Kimoyo! Kimoyo, calm down! This is ridiculous! Do you know how much trouble you can get into if you laid a hand on any of your classmates?" said Iruka-sensei in a strict tone.

"I don't caaaare! Let me go! Errr!" yelled Kimoyo stubbornly, still trying to get out of his grip.

"Well, you better care, young lady! This is no way for a girl to behave! Now, calm yourself, or I'll put you on timeout - or worse. Do you hear me?"

"Look what you did to my kimono, you lard! I'll never forgive yooouuu!" She was now aiming her words at Kiba, who was laughing hysterically.

Iruka-sensei sighed and spoke, "Let's get you out of here. This is insane...," and started walking away with Kimoyo was still struggling and screaming. What was more sad was that Shikamaru and Chouji were standing right behind Kiba the whole time and didn't say or do a thing. Shikamaru just stood there with his usual careless and lazy expression while Chouji munched on his chips. Truthfully, though, they did feel pity for her.

"Hahahaha! Did you guys see that? She was flopping like a fish, screaming like a monkey! Ohh, man!" Kiba cried, almost literally, with utmost joy and laughter.

"Man, that's just sad. She didn't even do anything that bad," Chouji said remorsefully with a mouthful of chips.

"Yeah, what a drag. She's just a girl. Can't you give her a break?" agreed Shikamaru.

"Wow, you're such wimps! I can't believe you guys. Forget you," Kiba says before walking off.

And where was Naruto - her closest friend so far - during all this, you ask? Well, he had his own issues to deal with, like his rivalry with Sasuke, though he had a basic idea of what was going on between Kiba and Kimoyo.

For the rest of the week, it was an ongoing war of tugging hair, pushing, yelling, name-calling, and all that jazz. Oh, what fun. As for Kimoyo's dirtied kimono, she couldn't wear it anymore until she was able to get it cleaned. She had only a few other clothes along with a small place to live in Naruto's apartment building. She's been very grateful for Naruto's "hook-ups," especially for the fact that he was able to find people to give her chores to do for money. With everything that's going on at the academy, though, it's hard for her to stay optimistic all the time. That's why, she became completely different by the start of the next week. She let her hair down and dressed in a navy-colored T-shirt and three-quarter pants. Though a big change, most actually liked the look.

"Wow, Kimoyo, you should've let your hair down a long time ago!" Ino praised. "No offense, but you kinda looked like a two-year-old with those pig tails. And that kimono..."

Before Ino could continue, Kimoyo slowly turned her head to her, her eye slightly covered by a lock of milky brunette hair. Her expression was plain yet daunting, and it said, "I'm not going to let anyone hurt me anymore, because I'm done making a fool out of myself. If anyone tries to hurt me, I'll make sure they end up looking like the fool."


	4. Chapter 1

_**Eye of the Phoenix - Chapter One**_

* * *

Since that second week of Ninja Academy, Iruka-sensei had grown great concern for Kimoyo, expecting she would be bitter and unfriendly - kind of like Sasuke - from then on, but things turned out to be exactly the opposite. He noticed throughout those three years that she held a positive outlook on life, judging from her frequent smiles and laughter over the littlest things, even her mistakes. No matter what sort of obstacle hit her, she would keep going with stronger confidence and determination, and because of this, she gained respect from her peers and made a few good friends, yet she resorted to herself every now and then. Even Kiba was on good terms with her now, and she with him, though they hardly spoke - not that they ever even had a normal conversation - to one another anymore. A lot really had changed. As for her personality in general, well...let's just say she "matured," but still kept her wild, youthful ways.

Now, Kimoyo had graduated Ninja Academy and it was time to be put into three-man squads. With her ninja headband tied below her waist like a belt, proudly showing she was an official Leaf shinobi, she walked through the entrance of the academy, where her dream of becoming a strong ninja warrior was born. Suddenly, she got out of her hopeful daydreaming after someone called, "Hey!", and turned to see that it was Naruto who cried, waving his entire arm at her joyfully. A grin immediately spread across Kimoyo's face as she giggled and said, "Hey! Can you believe we've finally become Genin? Three years goes by so fast, it's scary!" and walked towards him.

"I know, right? Even though time flies, I can't wait for what's up ahead! Sometimes I just want to get to everything all at once, y'know?" Naruto replied.

"Heh-heh, yeah. But don't think about the future too much, 'cause the more you do, the slower it'll come. There's never a need to rush," Kimoyo advised.

"Yeah, well...let's just hurry and see who's on our team!"

"So much for not rushing..."

So, that ended their conversation and they head to class where their teams would be announced. Kimoyo's stomach started to ache, but it relieved a little bit as she entered the classroom. Naruto immediately spotted Sasuke and decided to sit there as he walked towards him. "Let's sit here," he said, pointing to the open seats next to Sasuke, who had his elbows on the table with his fingers folded as he looked at the two in annoyance. Kimoyo felt sick as soon as she looked at Sasuke. She never liked him. "Um, it's okay," Kimoyo denied as politely as she could, impatient to get away from him. "Save that spot for Sakura," she suggested, remembering Naruto liked her. Naruto hadn't thought about that. "I'll sit somewhere else."

"Uh, okay," Naruto accepted willingly, trying not to sound too thankful.

"All right, later," Kimoyo said hastily as she smiled and turned to walk towards the lower rows in search of a seat since the ones above were already full. Once she had found one and saw two girls sitting there, she didn't hesitate to ask, "Hey, mind if I sit here?" with her typical sweet smile. One of the girls answered, "No problem!" and Kimoyo happily sat down. They were all silent at first, but as usual, Kimoyo broke the ice and asked, "Um...I feel kind of bad for not having gotten to know you better all those years, and I don't think I remember your name that well. Was it...Nami...? Na-"

"Naomi," corrected the girl that first spoke. "It's okay, I don't blame you, even though I remember who you are. Oh, I _definitely_ remember who _you_are."

"You do?" Kimoyo felt a bit embarrassed, but still flattered.

"Yup! Kimoyo. Wow, were you something..."

"Eh-heh-heh..." she laughed nervously, slightly blushing. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

"Oh, don't worry, that's a compliment!"

"Oh, yeah! I knew that..." She didn't know that.

"Hehe~ Well, let me introduce you to Yumi, if you don't remember her," Naomi said, turning her head towards the girl next to her.

"Nice to officially meet you, Kimoyo. I remember you, too, and how you would always get into fights with Kiba," Yumi spoke with a gentle smile. Kimoyo could immediately tell that she was a serious and reserved girl, but still very kind.

"Yeah..." Kimoyo smiled back and thought, 'Really? Out of all things, she had to bring _that_ up?' "We haven't said anything to each other in a while, though."

Before either of the girls could say anymore, there was a loud bang as if a large boulder crashed onto the ground, except that boulder was Sakura and Ino, who had made their grand entrance. Apparently, they had raced each other here since they were huffing and puffing. Now, they were making their way to, of course, Sasuke, followed by many other girls. It soon became a fangirl frenzy as they all began fighting about who should sit next to Sasuke.

"Fangirls. Ugh...," Kimoyo murmured under her breath with an expression that said, "You've gotta be kidding me..." She then turned her gaze to Naruto and saw that he was kneeling in front of Sasuke on his desk, only able to see his back. The first second, he just stood there, the next, he was...kissing Sasuke? Kimoyo's eyes were wide, just like the fangirls', but then she started snickering for some strange reason instead of feeling sorry...or disgusted, for her friend, since she then realized that he was actually pushed by accident and ended up like that.

"Naruto, you are so dead!" Sakura yelled, death-glaring at Naruto along with the other fangirls behind her while cracking her knuckles before she gave him a nice, big punch in the face.

"Ohh!" Kimoyo cried, flinching one eye.

"That's gotta hurt!" Naomi added with shock and worry in her expression.

"Poor guy...," Yumi said pitifully.

After everyone got settled in, Iruka-sensei picked up his clipboard and began calling out the teams off of it. Complaints were heard from some people, especially Sakura and Ino. It was ironic how most of them were already seated together. Kimoyo waited to see if it was like that for her, too.

"Kimoyo Yusagi-" Her heart stopped as she murmured, "So that's my last name..."

"Hey, that's _my_last name!" Naomi whispered in shock.

"What?" Kimoyo whispered back.

"-Naomi Yusagi-"

"Woah!" Kimoyo exclaimed, still whispering as she listened to the class' sounds of surprise and confusion, because they were both supposedly related and because they were the only team with two girls. "-and Yumi Konomina." Make that three. The class now broke out in a war of complaints and questions, mainly from the girls, such as, "Hey, how come they get to be all girls?", "That's not fair!", and many, many more.

"Class, settle down!" Iruka-sensei shouted in a booming voice that was impossible to not hear. Even a deaf person could at least feel the vibrations in their ears. Instantly, the class turned mute. "I know how you all feel, but I'm not the one who decides the squads; it's all the Hokage's doing. I can't ignore his orders and say it my way. It's not my choice." A flashback immediately invaded Kimoyo's mind.

_"Um, Naruto? Can I ask you something?"_

"Yeah, sure. What is it?"

"Well, I just wanna know... Why do you want to become Hokage so bad?"

"So people won't ignore me anymore and start treating me with respect - like somebody good, somebody important!"

As the last word faded, Kimoyo came back to reality and saw that everyone was leaving, and most people were already gone.

"Kimoyo, come on! We have to go meet our sensei!" says Naomi with Yumi by her side.

"Huh?" Kimoyo questioned as she hastily turned around to face Naomi. As soon as she processed what she said, she replied, "Oh, okay," and got up, feeling a bit embarrassed for zooming out so suddenly. Then, together, the girls head out.

* * *

_Er..._

_Sorry if it seemed a bit rushed towards the end (or for the whole thing).  
_

_I don't know what else to write or do to make it better. ;3;_

_This is why I need chur revieeews!_


End file.
